Jarod Yong

This is a story told not to discriminate, alienate or propagate a certain ethnic group or way of life. I’m saying things the way it is. It’s my honest depiction of what I have observed with my own eyes. Please do not take offence. Often have I wondered why the local people found it hard to break out of the chain of poverty that plagues a large majority of them. Apprenticeships & job opportunities are easily available wherever they are albeit lower wages, longer hours & hard work, it could still lead to something some day. I’ve always wondered why business owners would shun the local people & prefer to hire Indonesians for these menial jobs. I’ve always wondered why many of them have such low productivity even from the very beginning of their careers. This reflects the local men more than women. I find the local women more industrious & reliable. After observing them & especially their young up-close for 2 years, I realise it has got a lot to do with their attitu...

Every year is unique to a teacher even though he may be teaching in the same school & the same class. As the academic year draws to an end, let me share with you the #1 act of defiance I encountered this year. I taught a Form 3 class this year, two actually. But the focus is on this particular one with a majority of borderline fail students which also happens to be a class with a majority of boys. I put a lot of pressure on them & made them do a lot of exercises. There was this boy who probably had had enough. Can’t blame him though. I’m a tough teacher. I gave the students exercises to do after teaching & he was making a lot of noise while the others were quietly doing theirs. I went over to his desk & sternly told him to zip it & finish his work. He stopped but did not do his work. He just sat there in a taiko style. I ignored him & went on to monitor other students. However, he decided to make noise again. This time, I returned to his desk, raise...

This week, I want to share about a decision someone made that has both surprised me & inspired me. In every school, there is at least one teacher who is a master magician who can unbelievably disappear into thin air! Someone who would avoid doing anything & would even struggle with the most basic tasks. I hope you’re not one of them. If you are, hope is not lost. You can learn from this particular teacher in my school. taken from blog.sophinie.com This teacher is notorious for being lazy & lately for being anti-establishment. He would be late for lessons, teach half-heartedly & produce faulty exam papers that are distributed unvetted because he is both the Department Head & Panel Head. What meritocracy? This is seniority at its best! He rarely turns up for extra activities, would come late & leave early. He is in a position of influence & would often strut it but he rarely shows the aptitude or attitude of someone deserving it. Recently, ...

There was a time when I was less stubborn, very suggestible & still somewhat clueless to the female psyche. At that time, I was walking next to a good friend of mine who had broken his arm or leg or neck or whatever it was. As we passed by this pair of attractive females, they checked out his injury & cheekily imparted these 3 divine words of wisdom: "Injuries Are Sexy". Right there and then a blinding ray of light shone through the cloudy skies of my mind. I was proud of my friend & at the same time very much envious. However, I have learned something that will stay with me for the rest of my life. As the years went by, I had my fair share of cuts, bruises & hospital visits. Maybe even more than my fellow male because of my tendency to throw caution to the wind & go all out in competitive sports. Every time without fail, injuries will attract attention. From BOTH genders. The worse the injury the better! haha~~ The males will share a laugh ...